BUFFALO, N.Y.— Three players scored in double-figures for the Bengals, but it was not enough as Bryant & Stratton Buffalo closed the contest on a 12-3 run en route to a 65-60 victory to close out the first day of the Betty Abgott Invitational.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Bryant & Stratton – 65, Buffalo State – 60
LOCATION: Sports Arena - Buffalo, NY
RECORDS: Bryant & Stratton (6-0), Buffalo State (1-2)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Liv LeBaron (Corning/Corning East) led the Bengals with 18 points on 3 of 7 shooting from distance to go along with 10 rebounds.
- Katie Villarini (Hamburg/Hamburg) added 13 points, five rebounds and five steals.
- Tori Hackett (Canandaigua/Canandaigua Acad.) chipped in seven points and 10 rebounds, while Lexi Emmi (Liverpool/Liverpool) finished with 10 points and five rebounds.
- Bryant & Stratton stormed out of the gates by scoring 10 of the first 11 points and maintained its momentum to take a 14-7 lead after the first 10 minutes of action.
- Buffalo State continued to trim the lead of the first minutes of the second frame until it used a three-point field goal by Emmi to take its first lead of the contest with 8:33 left.
- The Bobcats regrouped over the next couple of minutes and closed the half by scoring the final four points to take a 31-20 halftime lead.
- The Bengals outscored Bryant & Stratton 23-11 in the third quarter and used a late three-point field goal by Villarini to take a 43-42 lead at the final intermission.
- Buffalo State maintained a narrow lead for the majority of the final stanza until the Bobcats converted back-to-back layups to take a 58-57 lead with 2:03 left.
- The Bengals had one final run to trim the deficit to three points on a pair of free throws by LeBaron, but they failed to complete the comeback as Bryant & Stratton clinched the victory.
- The Bobcats held a 17-8 advantage in points off of turnovers and a 13-6 edge in second chance opportunities.
- Buffalo State shot 30 percent from the floor, while Bryant & Statton complete 39 percent of their shots.
FOR THE FOES
- Danyea Barclay scored a game-high 26 points to go along with 17 rebounds.
- Alissa Johnson added 14 points and 10 rebounds.
FOR THE FOES
- Villa Maria defeated Thiel 79-45 in the tournament's opening game.
UP NEXT
Bryant & Stratton will play Villa Maria in tomorrow's title game at 1 p.m. Buffalo State will face Thiel in the consolation game at 11 a.m.
